‘One of the best countries in the world to cycle’ – Bikepacking author Markus Stitz on Aviemore gravel ride

ACTIVE OUTDOORS: John Davidson rides with guidebook author and round-the-world cyclist Markus Stitz on the Ryvoan Bothy circuit from his latest book

Markus Stitz makes a bold statement when we are out riding our bikes in the Cairngorms National Park. He asserts that Scotland is one of the best places in the world for cycling.

This is no patriotic boast. Markus has not only cycled solo around the globe – on a singlespeed bike – but has also pedalled in countless countries and shared his experiences far and wide.

Born in Germany, he chose to move to Scotland largely because of the hospitality he encountered on some of his early bikepacking tours.

Now he writes, films and advises on cycling and tourism, particularly in Scotland. His latest book, Gravel Rides Cairngorms and Perthshire, features several routes in the area, and I met him in Aviemore to test one of them out.

The Ryvoan Bothy route is one I am familiar with, so we head out from Ravenscraig Guest House on a hot, sunny Monday morning, into the village centre and down through the little underpass behind the public toilets to join the National Cycle Network, where we turn right towards the old bridge over the Spey.

Our route then takes us on the cycle path through Inverdruie and Coylumbridge to join the Old Logging Way path to Glenmore, where we pause for a quick coffee at the community-run Allt Mor Café before continuing up towards An Lochan Uaine and Ryvoan Bothy.

“I do think it is one of the best countries in the world to cycle – and that sounds quite steep but there are a couple of reasons,” Markus explains.

“The climate is great; you can ride your bike in Scotland all year round – there are no extremes. The one extreme I experienced quite a lot on the round-the-world trip was heat – and this is where Scotland is great, you know, temperatures are pretty moderate and, yes, we get the odd cold day in winter but not that often.

“Then people are super friendly here – it’s one of the reasons I came because I really enjoyed the hospitality I had when I first did biking trips here.

“The access rights are another good reason. It’s pretty much like Scandinavian countries, so as long as you do it responsibly – and I would argue that the majority of people who do those activities, they have a connection to nature; I do think they treat the places they are travelling to in a way that doesn’t harm them – you can do those trips here, you don’t have to ask for permission, so that’s a good thing.

“And the history as well. Germany does have a lot of historical routes as well, but the problem is it’s a country with 82 million people, so a lot of those ancient routes are tarmacked over, whereas I’ve just been out at the weekend on an old military road. So, you’ve still got this history here, there are some really interesting routes you can take that have been here for hundreds of years, and it makes it quite special to be able to do that.”

The track we are now following from near the “Green Lochan” towards Forest Lodge and Nethy Bridge is part of one such historical drove road across the Cairngorms. It is also a national nature reserve as we enter Abernethy with cloudless views over the mountains – a real photographer’s paradise on a day like this.

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Further ahead, there are warnings of a very aggressive capercaillie living in the area and Markus’s book directs you left on a diversion past houses at Rynettin to avoid the area. I’ve heard tales of this bird attacking mountain bikers in recent weeks so the warnings to avoid the more obvious track to Forest Lodge should be taken seriously.

“The diversion is actually really nice because you get a little bit higher up and you get a nice view from the top,” Markus says.

It’s true – I’ve never taken this alternative route before but it is a lovely way to go and is followed by a nice descent to the lodge, where we took a sharp left to head towards Tore Hill and Loch Garten on minor roads until we reach the car park for the RSPB’s Osprey Centre, where we join some nice singletrack that soon merges with the Speyside Way into Boat of Garten.

Markus is keen to stress that while this latest book is more about day rides than his usual bikepacking expeditions, it is still focused on some “core principles” – particularly that routes should be accessible by public transport where possible and mixing some of the more popular routes with places that are not so well known.

“Over the last few years I’ve been developing routes and I think you get a good feeling for what people are looking for and I wanted to have a nice mix of easy routes, some challenging stuff – because there are people out there who want to have a big day on the bike – and most of the stuff in the book is somewhere in between,” he says.

“This route we are on is one of the more popular and well-known routes – you get quite a lot of people here on a busy weekend – but then there are routes in the book like Little Glen Shee where you can ride in August and have the place for yourself.”

As we follow the delightful offroad path back to Aviemore, enjoying more views to the Cairngorms, Markus explains that he feels a responsibility to encourage more people to get on their bikes.

He says: “There is still a lot of potential for people to cycle in Scotland, we’re not at the point where we’ve got too many people cycling! So, whatever I can do to get more people out on bikes, I will.”

One bit of advice he wants to share, however, is to treat yourself.

“Cycling just for the sake of cycling at times is pretty tricky, especially if you add in the Scottish weather which can be quite fickle, but if you’ve cycled 20 kilometres and then have a coffee and cake, that’s a pretty cool thing!”

• Gravel Rides Cairngorms and Perthshire by Markus Stitz is published by Vertebrate Publishing, priced £15.95.

Route details

Ryvoan Bothy circuit

Distance 26 miles / 42 km

Terrain Offroad riding on purpose-built trails, forest and estate tracks and some minor road sections

Start/finish Aviemore

Map OS Landranger 36; OS Explorer OL57

Riding with guidebook author and round-the-world cyclist Markus Stitz on the Ryvoan Bothy circuit that features in his latest book

Click here to see the route in OS Maps

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